Globalism Versus Globalization

By

Joseph Nye |

What is globalization? In contrast, what is globalism? And how do both of these concepts shape our world? Joe Nye, the former Dean of the Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, outlines the fundamental differences between these two concepts. Globalism describes the reality of being interconnected, while globalization captures the speed at which these connections increase or decrease.
lobalism versus globalization? Many people would think the two terms refer to the same phenomenon. However, there are important differences between the two.

What is globalism?
Globalism, at its core, seeks to describe and explain nothing more than a world which is characterized by networks of connections that span multi-continental distances. It attempts to understand all the inter-connections of the modern world and to highlight patterns that underlie (and explain) them. In contrast, globalization refers to the increase or decline in the degree of globalism. It focuses on the forces, the dynamism or speed of these changes. In short, consider globalism as the underlying basic network, while globalization refers to the dynamic shrinking of distance on a large scale. Globalism is a phenomenon with ancient roots. Thus, the issue is not how old globalism is, but rather how "thin" or "thick" it is at any given time.

Globalism seeks to explain nothing more than a world which is characterized by networks of connections that span multicontinental distances.

The Silk Road: "Thin" globalism

As an example of "thin globalism," the Silk Road provided an economic and cultural link between ancient Europe and Asia. Getting from thin to thick globalism is globalization and how fast we get there is the rate of globalization. Of course, the Silk Road was plied by only a small group of hardy traders. Its direct impact was felt primarily by a small group of consumers along the road. In contrast, the operations of global financial markets today, for instance, affect people from Peoria to Penang. Thus, "globalization" is the process by which globalism becomes increasingly thick/intense.

"Thick" globalism: What's new?

The general point is that the increasing intensity, or thickness, of globalism the density

of networks of interdependence is not just a difference in degree from the past. An increasing "thickness" changes relationships, because it means that different relationships of interdependence intersect more deeply at more different points. At the same time, it is important to note that globalism does not imply universality. After all, the connections that make up the networks to define globalism may be more strongly felt in some parts of the world than in others.

There are four distinct dimensions of globalism: economic, military, environmental and social.

For example, at the turn of the 21st century, a quarter of the U.S. population used the World Wide Web. At the same time, however, only one-hundredth of one percent of the population of South Asia had access to this information network. Since globalism does not imply universality and given that globalization refers to dynamic changes, it is not surprising that globalization implies neither equity nor homogenization. In fact, it is equally likely to amplify differences or at least make people more aware of them.

Economic dimension of globalism and beyond

Both globalism and globalization are all too often defined in strictly economic terms, as if the world economy as such defined globalism. But other forms are equally important. There are four distinct dimensions of globalism: economic, military, environmental and social. Economic globalism involves long-distance flows of goods, services and capital and the information and perceptions that accompany market exchange. These flows, in turn, organize other processes linked to them. One example of economic globalization is low-wage production in Asia for the United States and European markets. Economic flows, markets and organization as in multinational firms all go together.

Based on the historic evidence, we should expect that globalism will be accompanied by continuing uncertainty.

The environmental dimension

Environmental globalism refers to the long-distance transport of materials in the atmosphere or oceans or of biological substances such as pathogens or genetic materials that affect human health and well-being. In contrast, examples of environmental globalization include the accelerating depletion of the stratospheric ozone layer as a result of ozone-depleting chemicals or the spread of the AIDS virus from central Africa around the world beginning at the end of the 1970s.

The military dimension

Military globalism refers to long-distance networks in which force, and the threat or promise of force, are deployed. A well-known example of military globalism is the

"balance of terror" between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War a strategic interdependence that was both acute and wellrecognized. What made this interdependence distinctive was not that it was totally new but that the scale and speed of the potential conflict arising from interdependence were so enormous.

We should not fear that globalism will lead to homogenization. Instead, it will expose us to the differences that surround us.

Military globalization manifested itself in recent times in the tragic events of September 11. Here, geographical distances were shrunk as the lawless mountains of Afghanistan provided the launching pad for attacks on New York and Washington some 4,000 miles away.

Social and cultural globalism

The fourth dimension is social and cultural globalism. It involves movements of ideas, information, images and of people, who of course carry ideas and information with them. Examples include the movement of religions or the diffusion of scientific knowledge. In the past, social globalism has often followed military and economic globalism. However, in the current era, social and cultural globalization is driven by the Internet, which reduces costs and globalizes communications, making the flow of ideas increasingly independent of other forms of globalization.

Why are these divisions useful?

The division of globalism into separate dimensions, as presented above, is inevitably somewhat arbitrary. Nonetheless, it is useful for analysis, because changes in the various dimensions of globalism do not necessarily go together. For example, economic globalism rose between 1850 and 1914 and fell between 1914 and 1945. However, at the same time as economic globalism was declining during the two World Wars, military globalism rose to new heights as did many aspects of social globalism. Take, for example, the worldwide influenza epidemic of 1918-19, which took 21 million lives. It was propagated by the flows of soldiers around the world. Does this suggest that globalism declined or rose between 1914 and 1945? It depends on the dimension, or sphere, of globalism one is referring to.

Based on the historic evidence, we should expect that globalism will be accompanied by continuing uncertainty.

Without a specifying adjective, general statements about globalism are often meaningless or misleading. The same applies when talking about globalization or globalism today.

Entering a world of uncertainty

Based on the historic evidence, we should expect that globalism will be accompanied by

continuing uncertainty. There will be a continual competition between increased complexity and uncertainty on the one hand and efforts by governments, market participants and others to comprehend and manage these systems on the other. In conclusion, we should not expect or fear that globalism will lead to homogenization. Instead, it will expose us more frequently and in more variations to the differences that surround us.

What is Globalization?
Globalization is not a process taking place somewhere far away in some exotic place. Globalization is taking place in Leeds as well as in Warsaw, in New York, and any small town in Poland. It is just outside your window, but inside as well. It is enough to walk down the street to see it. Global and local spaces can be separated only as an abstraction, in reality they are intertwined. The main trouble is that the globalization we are dealing with today is strictly negative. It is based on the breaking down of barriers, allowing for the globalization of capital, the movement of goods, information, crime, and terrorism, but not of the political and judicial institutions whose basis is national sovereignty. Globalization has been going on for a long time, but recent events, in a spectacular and shocking fashion, have made us keenly aware of the things that, previously, were latent and easily overlooked. The events of 9/11 and the more recent attacks in Madrid and London have made clear that the traditional means of securing and maintaining respect for law and order, crudely stated, are worthless. It surprised us. All of us.

Globalization is a difficult term to describe. This is probably because there are so many aspects to it. The simplest definition of globalization according to me is the spreading and homogenizing of cultures. For those that have read H.G.Wells science fiction novel The Time Machine where an inventor travels thousands of years into the future only to discover that humans have evolved to look similar. The same thing is slowly happening today.

It would appear that globalization is an inevitable process. It is more of a side effect of the human evolution process. Ever since man was born or created he has been on the move. The reasons were basic survival and we still move for some of the same reasons even today. As humans developed and their understanding of their surrounding and nature improved they began to settle down. This to development of culture, religions and societies. As they got more comfortable the need to move was eliminated. It was replaced by the need for more space to expand and inhabit. This led to the development of weapons, armies and navies and war. This was also a kind of globalization because the conquerors then imposed their culture and religion on their new subjects. The best example of this is the Roman Empire. It built temples and encouraged the people of from the newly conquered territories to convert and

follow their ways. Once the emperor Constantine declared Christianity and made it the official religion it began to spread and soon became one of the most prominent religions. The pace of globalization only improved with an improvement in the means of transportation. This mean t we could travel farther and more safely. This led to discovery of new territories like Africa, Australia and the Americas. Here too the conquerors imposed their cultures and today only a few pockets of the original inhabitants and their cultures survive. Globalization is not all bad though. It has reduced poverty worldwide. It has allowed the sharing of technology, wealth and understanding among nations (the societies of today). This in turn has promoted world peace as understanding between nations increased. It has raised the life expectancy of humans. It has opened the world to better understanding and communication among people. Teenagers and young adults now communicate with people from all over the world. Movies and TV shows is probably the best example of globalization. People from various countries either buy or download movies and shows and watch them even though the stories depict stories and places that are now part of their daily lives. Globalization had also increased the competition among different countries. People are striving to make their countries better and richer. With globalization there are chances that the developed countries will take over the developing and underdeveloped countries. It is better to take up measures to meet the needs of everyone in order to live peaceful and comfortable life. Some people are finding it difficult to cop up with globalization. With the proper us of modern technology communication can be made more easier and there will be more integration of different countries in the world. Globalization exists and there are predictions that the earth will become smaller and smaller as people start coming closer and closer.